Follow-up on 'Developer Exposes Building Quality Issues'

　　"Because the land belongs to Zeyuan Real Estate and the official seal is with them, every step of the Zhongshui Holiday project construction must be stamped and approved by Zeyuan Real Estate before it can proceed. Without Zeyuan Real Estate's prior consent, the project could not have been built at all."

　　——— Investor

　　"It is precisely because I stamped the seal that I am now afraid. If an earthquake occurs and problems arise in the building, I will bear the main responsibility and cannot shirk it."

　　——— Developer

　　The scandal of the Zhuhai Zhongshui Holiday developer self-exposing that the building used pipe piles not meeting national standards continues. Yesterday morning, the complaining investor visited to complain, claiming that when purchasing this batch of old-standard pipe piles, the developer had already stamped and approved. Developer Meng Kai admitted that due to negligence at the time, he was unclear about the old and new standards and did indeed stamp and approve the purchase. He is now very afraid that if problems arise, he will have to bear the main responsibility in the future. However, on the issue of how to implement the new standards, disputes remain among all parties.

　　Focus 1: Did the developer know about the use of substandard pipe piles?

　　Several heads of Zhuhai Hongji, the investor of the Zhongshui Holiday project, brought a thick box of written materials yesterday and complained to a Southern Metropolis Daily reporter, stating that the old pipe piles reported by the developer were purchased from a supplier in September 2010, but the developer Zeyuan Real Estate was aware at the time and stamped their approval. Later, after the old pipe piles were installed and inspected by the quality supervision station, the developer also signed the inspection report. It was precisely because of the developer's consent that the project completed each process step by step until topping out.

　　Since Zeyuan Real Estate had previously agreed to use old pipe piles not meeting the new standards, why did they report to the media two years later? The head of Hongji speculated that during the project construction, Zeyuan Real Estate, due to rising real estate prices, wanted to exclude the investor and develop the project alone. Additionally, because Zeyuan Real Estate had long refused to cooperate in obtaining the pre-sale permit for Zhongshui Holiday, the project was halted for two years. The company sued Zeyuan Real Estate this year for compensation. The other party chose to report at this time, aiming to use safety as a pretext to gain public support and thereby influence and interfere with the judge's verdict.

　　In response to the investor's questioning, Zeyuan Real Estate developer Meng Kai admitted that when the project procured this batch of substandard old pipe piles, due to negligence, he was unclear about the relevant standards and did indeed stamp the seal. It was not until the project topped out in 2011, when an insider reported to him, that he learned that this batch of old pipe piles did not meet national standards, causing hidden risks in the building's seismic performance.

　　Meng Kai stated that before the new standards were implemented, using old standards was legal, but with technological progress and national emphasis on safety, new standards were introduced, and enterprises should strictly implement them. "After using materials of the new standards, the safety and seismic resistance of buildings can be improved by one or two levels, greatly reducing losses in the event of geological disasters."

　　Focus 2: How should the use of materials not meeting new standards be handled?

　　After the new standards were introduced, how should enterprises that still use old-standard materials to build houses be punished, and how should completed projects be handled? If the project design drawings have already been approved, do they need to be revised?

　　A head of the quality supervision station under the Zhuhai Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau introduced that after the new standards were implemented, penalties should only target construction enterprises that use old pipe piles in design drawings and actual construction after the new standards were introduced. However, the design drawings of the Zhongshui Building project were approved before the new pipe pile standards were introduced, and later construction according to the standard drawings was not wrong.

　　However, a document issued by the Zhuhai Quality Supervision Station on March 29, 2010, stated that pipe pile construction should strictly implement the new specifications, and those not designed according to the above new specifications should be changed by the design unit. On August 17, 2012, the Zhuhai quality inspection department issued another notice clarifying that if pipe piles are found not to meet the new standards during inspection, they must not be used, and should be immediately sealed on site and reported to relevant departments for handling.

　　Some industry insiders said that strictly speaking, as long as the new standards were implemented at the time of pipe pile installation, the design drawings should be changed to use new-standard materials; otherwise, it is a violation. But the person admitted that due to the late and incomplete supporting operational details after the new standards were implemented, there are different understandings on how to implement the new standards. For example, whether projects with approved drawings need to be revised, because the regulations are unclear, everyone has their own interpretation, causing controversy. The person suggested that in the case of unclear regulations and disputes among competent authorities, developers, investors, and constructors, the court can be asked to adjudicate. "If the court rules that certain circumstances can continue to use old standards, then follow the court's decision, so developers don't have to worry about being held responsible for violations."

　　As for how to penalize violations of standards, the head of the Zhuhai Quality Supervision Station did not respond, citing a meeting.